SMITHERS: An object-oriented modular mapping methodology for MCNP-based neutronic–thermal hydraulic multiphysics
A novel object-oriented modular mapping methodology for externally coupled neutronics–thermal hydraulics multiphysics simulations was developed. The Simulator using MCNP with Integrated Thermal-Hydraulics for Exploratory Reactor Studies (SMITHERS) code performs on-the-fly mapping of material-wise power distribution tallies implemented by MCNP-based neutron transport/depletion solvers for use in estimating coolant temperature and density distributions with a separate thermal-hydraulic solver. The key development of SMITHERS is that it reconstructs the hierarchical geometry structure of the material-wise power generation tallies from the depletion solver automatically, with only a modicum of additional information required from the user. In addition, it performs the basis mapping from the combinatorial geometry of the depletion solver to the required geometry of the thermal-hydraulic solver in a generalizable manner, such that it can transparently accommodate varying levels of thermal-hydraulic solver geometric fidelity, from the nodal geometry of multi-channel analysis solvers to the pin-cell level of discretization for sub-channel analysis solvers.
- Research Organization:
- Los Alamos National Lab. (LANL), Los Alamos, NM (United States)
- Sponsoring Organization:
- USDOE
- Grant/Contract Number:
- AC52-06NA25396
- OSTI ID:
- 1228757
- Report Number(s):
- LA-UR-14-28485; PII: S0306454915001619
- Journal Information:
- Annals of Nuclear Energy (Oxford), Vol. 81, Issue C; ISSN 0306-4549
- Publisher:
- ElsevierCopyright Statement
- Country of Publication:
- United States
- Language:
- English
Web of Science
Similar Records
Proposed Semi-Analytic Benchmark for Coupled Neutronics/Thermal-Hydraulics Feedback in Multiphysics Simulations
Comparison of subchannel and averaged channel thermal-hydraulic descriptions on coupled pin-by-pin neutronic calculations